Boondock Saints Essay :: essays research papers

The Boondock Saints movie exhibits and demonstrates many possible causes and reasons for social deviance. One example of this is shown in the Subjective view of deviance through a Constructionist Theory. The Subjectivist believes that a deviant person is a conscious, feeling, thinking subject and that one should understand the experience of that person. From a Constructionist perspective, deviants are actively seeking meanings in the deviant activities. The brothers in the movie are seeking meaning from their killing. They believe that they are on a mission from God, and that they will be protected and blessed for doing this. The brothers in the movie are a good study on mass murder. While they are not murdering everyone at exactly the same time in the same place, they are doing it in a cult-like sort of way. They believe that they are on a mission from God, to kill all criminals in Boston. They believe that they are following a direct order from God, much like what certain cults believe. Most of their murders are also pre-meditated. Perhaps the biggest factor in why these brothers murder can be attributed to the theory of Subculture of Violence. Subculture of violence states that those who are poor or less fortunate are more likely to engage in violent acts, such as murder and rape. This is attributed to their social standing, and their inability to get out of the lower social classes. The actual cause of violence in these situations is poverty and social inequality. While the brothers are not lashing out at those who are significantly richer than them, they are lashing out at those who are more powerful than them. They are also lashing out at those who make others poor and impoverished. Last but not least, one can also look at the brothers’ acts as acts of terrorism. These murders are not terrorism towards the general populace, but towards those who are criminals, and to those who might become criminals.

Subliminal Advertising Is Fair :: essays research papers

Why Subliminal Advertising is Fair to American Consumers The United States ad industry consists of many ad agencies whose job it is to make sure that the American consumers buy their clients products. As many people get smart enough to look past the physical eye tricks the ad may play on them, the ad agencies has turned to subliminal messages to get their message across. From garbage bag advertisements to the advertisements for the hardest type of liquor you can buy, subliminal advertising will almost always affect you without you even knowing it, and its perfectly legal. If a company has the money, the time, and the sense to use the first amendment of the constitution, there is no reason why subliminal messages cannot appear in their advertisements. To produce a subliminal advertisement, a company must pour in a great deal of money to get the consumer wanting their product. An ad agency can spend anywhere up to $50,000 to create a single, one page magazine layout or flyer, carefully getting every detail to perfection. If a company chooses to use this kind of money to advertise, it is perfectly legal to do so. Subliminal messages are just a more efficient way of advertising by appealing to the consumers subconscious mind and bypassing their decision making mind, swaying them to need something they really do not. However, while subliminal messages may make consumers buy items, they also prevent theft. That elevator music you hear in Sears is not just there because the manager likes it. The first purpose of this music is to lull you into a shopping trance. You will also notice that there are no clocks in Sears. This is to make you loose all track of time if you don't have a watch and this in itself is subliminal. However, unde rneath the music, in a frequency only audible to the subconscious, there are messages like, "Do not shoplift", "Stealing is bad", and "Just buy it". The messages use key words which the human mind knows are wrong, even if a person's personality thinks they are okay. So subliminal messages prevent theft also. Making these messages also takes an incredible amount of time. The same advertisements that can take up to $50,000 to make, also take around 3 to 5 months to get every detail just right so the consumer thinks that the images just appear there by coincidence, if the images are even seen by the conscious mind at all.

Space :: essays research papers

The Presidential Commission on the Space Shuttle Challenger Accident, chaired by former Secretary of State William P. Rogers, investigated the circumstances surrounding the explosion of the Space Shuttle Challenger shortly after liftoff on January 28, 1986. The Commission was established in February, 1986, pursuant to Executive Order 12546, and it issued its final report in June, 1986. William Rogers was at the time a practicing attorney and senior partner in the law firm Rogers & Wells. In 1973, Rogers was awarded the Medal of Freedom. All other members of the Commission have excellent qualifications such as previous spacecraft commander, engineers, director of Space Systems and Command, Control, Communication, astronauts, and physicists. January 28th, 1986, was the coldest day that NASA had ever attempted to launch a manned spacecraft; at 36 degrees Fahrenheit, it was 15 degrees colder than any previous launch temperature. Although lift-off time for the Challenger flight 51-L had been delayed twice that morning, all operations and systems seemed to be under control. An â€Å"ice† team had been sent to the launch pad at 1:30 a.m. and again at 8:45 a.m., and although there was some build-up, ice was cleared as a concern. Other weather conditions were cleared by NASA staff at Cape Canaveral through the use of weather balloons and also at the emergency landing site in Dakar, Senegal, Africa. The seven member crew arrived at the launch pad in the astronauts’ van shortly after 8:00 and were all strapped into their seats by 8:36 a.m. â€Å"Three, two, one†¦Ã¢â‚¬  [stated mission control]. â€Å"Roger. Go with the throttle up,† shuttle commander Dick Scobee radioed. 73 seconds later, millions of p eople across the nation watched the awful explosion spread across their television screens and realized that something had gone wrong before they heard the voice of mission control: â€Å"Obviously†¦a major malfunction.† Rather than delivering the State of the Union address that evening as scheduled, President Ronald Reagan made a brief speech. â€Å"We’ll continue our quest in space,† he promised traumatized Americans. â€Å"There will be more shuttle flights and more shuttle crews and, yes, more volunteers, more civilians, more teachers in space.† There would be no shuttle flights for nearly three years. There would be no teacher in space, and for those left on the ground, for the families of seven deceased astronauts, there would be years of bitterness, grief and anger, and pain before their lives could finally heal.

Coach Carter Essay

I believe that this will be easier for me to understand what Is happening In the film and I think I will be able to understand the personalities of the characters whilst watching a film rather than reading a novel. I find that they are easier to analyze. Coach Carter Is based on a true story, Samuel L. Jackson portrays Ken Carter who has a legend status at Richmond high.At the beginning of the film Carter was offered a job at the school as head coach of the basketball team. He accepted the Job to attempt to bring change into the or neighborhood and to the student athletes who played for the basketball team. One theme that the film uses is teamwork, at the beginning of the story the team weren't playing as one unit but as a group of individuals, this resulted in the team losing most of their games in the previous years.When Coach Carter took over he taught them that teamwork will always beat a team of individuals, he taught them to pass the ball to each other rather than continuously shooting, he also punished the team as a group rather than singling out each Individual. This made brought the team closer and taught them some discipline. Another theme was winning Isn't always everything, this theme Is shown when Coach Carter locks up the gym, he does this because the team break their contracts with not all of them achieving a or higher after they promised they would all get their act together and pass their classes.He shows that he cares more about the boys passing their classes than winning which his main goal was to try to ensure a successful future for these students rather than winning championships, proving that he values education and a successful life over winning games. This theme is also shown in the last game where he team comes up short in the final, obviously them team was shattered but after the game they were in the change rooms singing because they were proud of their achievements. The boys were all proud of how far they had come and were very appr eciative of what the Coach had done for them and getting their lives back on track.One really big theme Is respect from one of the very first scenes the Coach talks about respect and how the team should refer to him as â€Å"sir† and vice-versa, In that same scene he talks about the â€Å"n-word† and how it is a derogatory term and he does not want to hear it anymore. At first the team didn't respect the Coach, but once they realized what he was trying to do and saw that he was respecting them they eventually showed respect back by sticking by him when his job was on the line after complaints about his coaching methods.During the team's first few game the boys would continuously taunt their opponents as they began to get overly cocky due to their winning streak, Carter then punished them as he did not want his boys to be perceived that way and wanted the boys to win graciously. Throughout the course of the film there were a few characters who developed their personalit ies, one being Time Cruz, at the beginning of the film he was a no good street thug who was a menace to society and was In a gang and he had no purpose In life, Coach Carter opened his eyes and showed him that there Is more to life than being a thug.In a later scene there was a drive by shooting in which his cousin was involved in, upon Carter for guidance. Cruz went on to follow Coach Carter's advice and he went on with his study and continued to play basketball. In the end this led to Cruz going to college and earning a degree. Coach Ken Carter is shown as highly unorthodox high school basketball coach. Coach Carter took the coaching Job and made his own rules.He believed that everyone in the team must receive a good grades and form a strong bond in the team or they would not play and he had everyone in the team sign a contract stating that they would get good grades or else not be able to play. The team was undefeated and on its way to the Championship, when Coach Carter received the low grades of his players he locked the gym and benched the team for not getting good enough grades. Coach Carter received some praise but much more criticism for his decision. Coach Carter taught his players that they must be committed and work art to excel.Whilst watching the movie I noticed that there were not many moments when the whole team was in the shot, instead the director really wanted to focus on one person at a time. They focus on individuals which shows their attitudes and expressions really well. However on the occasions that they were shown together they look like a united team, this shows the viewer the bond that they have created. This movie was filled with lots of Urn style music which fits well with a movie about basketball, this satisfies most viewers as many basketball players stereotypically sites to this music.Depending on the scene the music was more up-tempo or was slowed down, during a game the music was used to pump the viewer up whilst the sadder pa rts of the movie had slow emotional music, for example music about losing people was played when one of the players relatives died. In the end Richmond lost in the championship final, the players were distraught but shortly after they realized that they had won in another way, the players made friendships, learnt respect, got their lives back on track, earned college scholarships and ultimately became better people.

A Game of Thrones Chapter Sixty-one

Daenerys When the battle was done, Dany rode her silver through the fields of the dead. Her handmaids and the men of her khas came after, smiling and jesting among themselves. Dothraki hooves had torn the earth and trampled the rye and lentils into the ground, while arakhs and arrows had sown a terrible new crop and watered it with blood. Dying horses lifted their heads and screamed at her as she rode past. Wounded men moaned and prayed. Jaqqa rhan moved among them, the mercy men with their heavy axes, taking a harvest of heads from the dead and dying alike. After them would scurry a flock of small girls, pulling arrows from the corpses to fill their baskets. Last of all the dogs would come sniffing, lean and hungry, the feral pack that was never far behind the khalasar. The sheep had been dead longest. There seemed to be thousands of them, black with flies, arrow shafts bristling from each carcass. Khal Ogo's riders had done that, Dany knew; no man of Drogo's khalasar would be such a fool as to waste his arrows on sheep when there were shepherds yet to kill. The town was afire, black plumes of smoke roiling and tumbling as they rose into a hard blue sky. Beneath broken walls of dried mud, riders galloped back and forth, swinging their long whips as they herded the survivors from the smoking rubble. The women and children of Ogo's khalasar walked with a sullen pride, even in defeat and bondage; they were slaves now, but they seemed not to fear it. It was different with the townsfolk. Dany pitied them; she remembered what terror felt like. Mothers stumbled along with blank, dead faces, pulling sobbing children by the hand. There were only a few men among them, cripples and cowards and grandfathers. Ser Jorah said the people of this country named themselves the Lhazareen, but the Dothraki called them haesh rakhi, the Lamb Men. Once Dany might have taken them for Dothraki, for they had the same copper skin and almond-shaped eyes. Now they looked alien to her, squat and flat-faced, their black hair cropped unnaturally short. They were herders of sheep and eaters of vegetables, and Khal Drogo said they belonged south of the river bend. The grass of the Dothraki sea was not meant for sheep. Dany saw one boy bolt and run for the river. A rider cut him off and turned him, and the others boxed him in, cracking their whips in his face, running him this way and that. One galloped behind him, lashing him across the buttocks until his thighs ran red with blood. Another snared his ankle with a lash and sent him sprawling. Finally, when the boy could only crawl, they grew bored of the sport and put an arrow through his back. Ser Jorah met her outside the shattered gate. He wore a dark green surcoat over his mail. His gauntlets, greaves, and greathelm were dark grey steel. The Dothraki had mocked him for a coward when he donned his armor, but the knight had spit insults right back in their teeth, tempers had flared, longsword had clashed with arakh, and the rider whose taunts had been loudest had been left behind to bleed to death. Ser Jorah lifted the visor of his flat-topped greathelm as he rode up. â€Å"Your lord husband awaits you within the town.† â€Å"Drogo took no harm?† â€Å"A few cuts,† Ser Jorah answered, â€Å"nothing of consequence. He slew two khals this day. Khal Ogo first, and then the son, Fogo, who became khal when Ogo fell. His bloodriders cut the bells from their hair, and now Khal Drogo's every step rings louder than before.† Ogo and his son had shared the high bench with her lord husband at the naming feast where Viserys had been crowned, but that was in Vaes Dothrak, beneath the Mother of Mountains, where every rider was a brother and all quarrels were put aside. It was different out in the grass. Ogo's khalasar had been attacking the town when Khal Drogo caught him. She wondered what the Lamb Men had thought, when they first saw the dust of their horses from atop those cracked-mud walls. Perhaps a few, the younger and more foolish who still believed that the gods heard the prayers of desperate men, took it for deliverance. Across the road, a girl no older than Dany was sobbing in a high thin voice as a rider shoved her over a pile of corpses, facedown, and thrust himself inside her. Other riders dismounted to take their turns. That was the sort of deliverance the Dothraki brought the Lamb Men. I am the blood of the dragon, Daenerys Targaryen reminded herself as she turned her face away. She pressed her lips together and hardened her heart and rode on toward the gate. â€Å"Most of Ogo's riders fled,† Ser Jorah was saying. â€Å"Still, there may be as many as ten thousand captives.† Slaves, Dany thought. Khal Drogo would drive them downriver to one of the towns on Slaver's Bay. She wanted to cry, but she told herself that she must be strong. This is war, this is what it looks like, this is the price of the Iron Throne. â€Å"I've told the khal he ought to make for Meereen,† Ser Jorah said. â€Å"They'll pay a better price than he'd get from a slaving caravan. Illyrio writes that they had a plague last year, so the brothels are paying double for healthy young girls, and triple for boys under ten. If enough children survive the journey, the gold will buy us all the ships we need, and hire men to sail them.† Behind them, the girl being raped made a heartrending sound, a long sobbing wail that went on and on and on. Dany's hand clenched hard around the reins, and she turned the silver's head. â€Å"Make them stop,† she commanded Ser Jorah. â€Å"Khaleesi?† The knight sounded perplexed. â€Å"You heard my words,† she said. â€Å"Stop them.† She spoke to her khas in the harsh accents of Dothraki. â€Å"Jhogo, Quaro, you will aid Ser Jorah. I want no rape.† The warriors exchanged a baffled look. Jorah Mormont spurred his horse closer. â€Å"Princess,† he said, â€Å"you have a gentle heart, but you do not understand. This is how it has always been. Those men have shed blood for the khal. Now they claim their reward.† Across the road, the girl was still crying, her high singsong tongue strange to Dany's ears. The first man was done with her now, and a second had taken his place. â€Å"She is a lamb girl,† Quaro said in Dothraki. â€Å"She is nothing, Khaleesi. The riders do her honor. The Lamb Men lay with sheep, it is known.† â€Å"It is known,† her handmaid Irri echoed. â€Å"It is known,† agreed Jhogo, astride the tall grey stallion that Drogo had given him. â€Å"If her wailing offends your ears, Khaleesi, Jhogo will bring you her tongue.† He drew his arakh. â€Å"I will not have her harmed,† Dany said. â€Å"I claim her. Do as I command you, or Khal Drogo will know the reason why.† â€Å"Ai, Khaleesi,† Jhogo replied, kicking his horse. Quaro and the others followed his lead, the bells in their hair chiming. â€Å"Go with them,† she commanded Ser Jorah. â€Å"As you command.† The knight gave her a curious look. â€Å"You are your brother's sister, in truth.† â€Å"Viserys?† She did not understand. â€Å"No,† he answered. â€Å"Rhaegar.† He galloped off. Dany heard Jhogo shout. The rapers laughed at him. One man shouted back. Jhogo's arakh flashed, and the man's head went tumbling from his shoulders. Laughter turned to curses as the horsemen reached for weapons, but by then Quaro and Aggo and Rakharo were there. She saw Aggo point across the road to where she sat upon her silver. The riders looked at her with cold black eyes. One spat. The others scattered to their mounts, muttering. All the while the man atop the lamb girl continued to plunge in and out of her, so intent on his pleasure that he seemed unaware of what was going on around him. Ser Jorah dismounted and wrenched him off with a mailed hand. The Dothraki went sprawling in the mud, bounced up with a knife in hand, and died with Aggo's arrow through his throat. Mormont pulled the girl off the pile of corpses and wrapped her in his blood-spattered cloak. He led her across the road to Dany. â€Å"What do you want done with her?† The girl was trembling, her eyes wide and vague. Her hair was matted with blood. â€Å"Doreah, see to her hurts. You do not have a rider's look, perhaps she will not fear you. The rest, with me.† She urged the silver through the broken wooden gate. It was worse inside the town. Many of the houses were afire, and the jaqqa rhan had been about their grisly work. Headless corpses filled the narrow, twisty lanes. They passed other women being raped. Each time Dany reined up, sent her khas to make an end to it, and claimed the victim as slave. One of them, a thick-bodied, flat-nosed woman of forty years, blessed Dany haltingly in the Common Tongue, but from the others she got only flat black stares. They were suspicious of her, she realized with sadness; afraid that she had saved them for some worse fate. â€Å"You cannot claim them all, child,† Ser Jorah said, the fourth time they stopped, while the warriors of her khas herded her new slaves behind her. â€Å"I am khaleesi, heir to the Seven Kingdoms, the blood of the dragon,† Dany reminded him. â€Å"It is not for you to tell me what I cannot do.† Across the city, a building collapsed in a great gout of fire and smoke, and she heard distant screams and the wailing of frightened children. They found Khal Drogo seated before a square windowless temple with thick mud walls and a bulbous dome like some immense brown onion. Beside him was a pile of heads taller than he was. One of the short arrows of the Lamb Men stuck through the meat of his upper arm, and blood covered the left side of his bare chest like a splash of paint. His three bloodriders were with him. Jhiqui helped Dany dismount; she had grown clumsy as her belly grew larger and heavier. She knelt before the khal. â€Å"My sun-and-stars is wounded.† The arakh cut was wide but shallow; his left nipple was gone, and a flap of bloody flesh and skin dangled from his chest like a wet rag. â€Å"Is scratch, moon of life, from arakh of one bloodrider to Khal Ogo,† Khal Drogo said in the Common Tongue. â€Å"I kill him for it, and Ogo too.† He turned his head, the bells in his braid ringing softly. â€Å"Is Ogo you hear, and Fogo his khalakka, who was khal when I slew him.† â€Å"No man can stand before the sun of my life,† Dany said, â€Å"the father of the stallion who mounts the world.† A mounted warrior rode up and vaulted from his saddle. He spoke to Haggo, a stream of angry Dothraki too fast for Dany to understand. The huge bloodrider gave her a heavy look before he turned to his khal â€Å"This one is Mago, who rides in the khas of Ko Jhaqo. He says the khaleesi has taken his spoils, a daughter of the lambs who was his to mount.† Khal Drogo's face was still and hard, but his black eyes were curious as they went to Dany. â€Å"Tell me the truth of this, moon of my life,† he commanded in Dothraki. Dany told him what she had done, in his own tongue so the khal would understand her better, her words simple and direct. When she was done, Drogo was frowning. â€Å"This is the way of war. These women are our slaves now, to do with as we please.† â€Å"It pleases me to hold them safe,† Dany said, wondering if she had dared too much. â€Å"If your warriors would mount these women, let them take them gently and keep them for wives. Give them places in the khalasar and let them bear you sons.† Qotho was ever the cruelest of the bloodriders. It was he who laughed. â€Å"Does the horse breed with the sheep?† Something in his tone reminded her of Viserys. Dany turned on him angrily. â€Å"The dragon feeds on horse and sheep alike.† Khal Drogo smiled. â€Å"See how fierce she grows!† he said. â€Å"It is my son inside her, the stallion who mounts the world, filling her with his fire. Ride slowly, Qotho . . . if the mother does not burn you where you sit, the son will trample you into the mud. And you, Mago, hold your tongue and find another lamb to mount. These belong to my khaleesi.† He started to reach out a hand to Daenerys, but as he lifted his arm Drogo grimaced in sudden pain and turned his head. Dany could almost feel his agony. The wounds were worse than Ser Jorah had led her to believe. â€Å"Where are the healers?† she demanded. The khalasar had two sorts: barren women and eunuch slaves. The herbwomen dealt in potions and spells, the eunuchs in knife, needle, and fire. â€Å"Why do they not attend the khal?† â€Å"The khal sent the hairless men away, Khaleesi,† old Cohollo assured her. Dany saw the bloodrider had taken a wound himself; a deep gash in his left shoulder. â€Å"Many riders are hurt,† Khal Drogo said stubbornly. â€Å"Let them be healed first. This arrow is no more than the bite of a fly, this little cut only a new scar to boast of to my son.† Dany could see the muscles in his chest where the skin had been cut away. A trickle of blood ran from the arrow that pierced his arm. â€Å"It is not for Khal Drogo to wait,† she proclaimed. â€Å"Jhogo, seek out these eunuchs and bring them here at once.† â€Å"Silver Lady,† a woman's voice said behind her, â€Å"I can help the Great Rider with his hurts.† Dany turned her head. The speaker was one of the slaves she had claimed, the heavy, flat-nosed woman who had blessed her. â€Å"The khal needs no help from women who lie with sheep,† barked Qotho. â€Å"Aggo, cut out her tongue.† Aggo grabbed her hair and pressed a knife to her throat. Dany lifted a hand. â€Å"No. She is mine. Let her speak.† Aggo looked from her to Qotho. He lowered his knife. â€Å"I meant no wrong, fierce riders.† The woman spoke Dothraki well. The robes she wore had once been the lightest and finest of woolens, rich with embroidery, but now they were mud-caked and bloody and ripped. She clutched the torn cloth of her bodice to her heavy breasts. â€Å"I have some small skill in the healing arts.† â€Å"Who are you?† Dany asked her. â€Å"I am named Mirri Maz Duur. I am godswife of this temple.† â€Å"Maegi,† grunted Haggo, fingering his arakh. His look was dark. Dany remembered the word from a terrifying story that Jhiqui had told her one night by the cookfire. A maegi was a woman who lay with demons and practiced the blackest of sorceries, a vile thing, evil and soulless, who came to men in the dark of night and sucked life and strength from their bodies. â€Å"I am a healer,† Mirri Maz Duur said. â€Å"A healer of sheeps,† sneered Qotho. â€Å"Blood of my blood, I say kill this maegi and wait for the hairless men.† Dany ignored the bloodrider's outburst. This old, homely, thickbodied woman did not look like a maegi to her. â€Å"Where did you learn your healing, Mirri Maz Duur?† â€Å"My mother was godswife before me, and taught me all the songs and spells most pleasing to the Great Shepherd, and how to make the sacred smokes and ointments from leaf and root and berry. When I was younger and more fair, I went in caravan to Asshai by the Shadow, to learn from their mages. Ships from many lands come to Asshai, so I lingered long to study the healing ways of distant peoples. A moonsinger of the Jogos Nhai gifted me with her birthing songs, a woman of your own riding people taught me the magics of grass and corn and horse, and a maester from the Sunset Lands opened a body for me and showed me all the secrets that hide beneath the skin.† Ser Jorah Mormont spoke up. â€Å"A maester?† â€Å"Marwyn, he named himself,† the woman replied in the Common Tongue. â€Å"From the sea. Beyond the sea. The Seven Lands, he said. Sunset Lands. Where men are iron and dragons rule. He taught me this speech.† â€Å"A maester in Asshai,† Ser Jorah mused. â€Å"Tell me, Godswife, what did this Marwyn wear about his neck?† â€Å"A chain so tight it was like to choke him, Iron Lord, with links of many metals.† The knight looked at Dany. â€Å"Only a man trained in the Citadel of Oldtown wears such a chain,† he said, â€Å"and such men do know much of healing.† â€Å"Why should you want to help my khal?† â€Å"All men are one flock, or so we are taught,† replied Mirri Maz Duur. â€Å"The Great Shepherd sent me to earth to heal his lambs, wherever I might find them.† Qotho gave her a stinging slap. â€Å"We are no sheep, maegi.† â€Å"Stop it,† Dany said angrily. â€Å"She is mine. I will not have her harmed.† Khal Drogo grunted. â€Å"The arrow must come out, Qotho.† â€Å"Yes, Great Rider,† Mirri Maz Duur answered, touching her bruised face. â€Å"And your breast must be washed and sewn, lest the wound fester.† â€Å"Do it, then,† Khal Drogo commanded. â€Å"Great Rider,† the woman said, â€Å"my tools and potions are inside the god's house, where the healing powers are strongest.† â€Å"I will carry you, blood of my blood,† Haggo offered. Khal Drogo waved him away. â€Å"I need no man's help,† he said, in a voice proud and hard. He stood, unaided, towering over them all. A fresh wave of blood ran down his breast, from where Ogo's arakh had cut off his nipple. Dany moved quickly to his side. â€Å"I am no man,† she whispered, â€Å"so you may lean on me.† Drogo put a huge hand on her shoulder. She took some of his weight as they walked toward the great mud temple. The three bloodriders followed. Dany commanded Ser Jorah and the warriors of her khas to guard the entrance and make certain no one set the building afire while they were still inside. They passed through a series of anterooms, into the high central chamber under the onion. Faint light shone down through hidden windows above. A few torches burnt smokily from sconces on the walls. Sheepskins were scattered across the mud floor. â€Å"There,† Mirri Maz Duur said, pointing to the altar, a massive blue-veined stone carved with images of shepherds and their flocks. Khal Drogo lay upon it. The old woman threw a handful of dried leaves onto a brazier, filling the chamber with fragrant smoke. â€Å"Best if you wait outside,† she told the rest of them. â€Å"We are blood of his blood,† Cohollo said. â€Å"Here we wait.† Qotho stepped close to Mirri Maz Duur. â€Å"Know this, wife of the Lamb God. Harm the khal and you suffer the same.† He drew his skinning knife and showed her the blade. â€Å"She will do no harm.† Dany felt she could trust this old, plainfaced woman with her flat nose; she had saved her from the hard hands of her rapers, after all. â€Å"If you must stay, then help,† Mirri told the bloodriders. â€Å"The Great Rider is too strong for me. Hold him still while I draw the arrow from his flesh.† She let the rags of her gown fall to her waist as she opened a carved chest, and busied herself with bottles and boxes, knives and needles. When she was ready, she broke off the barbed arrowhead and pulled out the shaft, chanting in the singsong tongue of the Lhazareen. She heated a flagon of wine to boiling on the brazier, and poured it over his wounds. Khal Drogo cursed her, but he did not move. She bound the arrow wound with a plaster of wet leaves and turned to the gash on his breast, smearing it with a pale green paste before she pulled the flap of skin back in place. The khal ground his teeth together and swallowed a scream. The godswife took out a silver needle and a bobbin of silk thread and began to close the flesh. When she was done she painted the skin with red ointment, covered it with more leaves, and bound the breast in a ragged piece of lambskin. â€Å"You must say the prayers I give you and keep the lambskin in place for ten days and ten nights,† she said. â€Å"There will be fever, and itching, and a great scar when the healing is done.† Khal Drogo sat, bells ringing. â€Å"I sing of my scars, sheep woman.† He flexed his arm and scowled. â€Å"Drink neither wine nor the milk of the poppy,† she cautioned him. â€Å"Pain you will have, but you must keep your body strong to fight the poison spirits.† â€Å"I am khal,† Drogo said. â€Å"I spit on pain and drink what I like. Cohollo, bring my vest.† The older man hastened off. â€Å"Before,† Dany said to the ugly Lhazareen woman, â€Å"I heard you speak of birthing songs . . . â€Å" â€Å"I know every secret of the bloody bed, Silver Lady, nor have I ever lost a babe,† Mirri Maz Duur replied. â€Å"My time is near,† Dany said. â€Å"I would have you attend me when he comes, if you would.† Khal Drogo laughed. â€Å"Moon of my life, you do not ask a slave, you tell her. She will do as you command.† He jumped down from the altar. â€Å"Come, my blood. The stallions call, this place is ashes. It is time to ride.† Haggo followed the khal from the temple, but Qotho lingered long enough to favor Mirri Maz Duur with a stare. â€Å"Remember, maegi, as the khal fares, so shall you.† â€Å"As you say, rider,† the woman answered him, gathering up her jars and bottles. â€Å"The Great Shepherd guards the flock.†

Maslow’s Theory of Personality

Maslow’s served as one of the most influential theorists in his field. He proposed a more simple and appealing theory wchich acted against reductionism and instead proposed a more holistic approach for personality research. Maslow’s theory of personality is based on a theory of motivation, characterized by a particular hierarchy of need and an end product of self-actualization which follows after all the needs have been satisfied. The Theory of Motivation, human behavior is influenced by basic needs. These needs are   ordered in a hierarchy which indicates which of these needs is the most urgent and accordingly which has to be satisfied before a higher need can be catered to. These needs are (1) physiological needs; (2) safety needs; (3) belonging needs; (4) esteem needs; and (5) self-actualization. Consequently, self-actualization, being the last of the stages is reached when all needs are fulfilled. However, achievement of this state is not fixed, it is still a process of development which is always continuous. Self-actualization signifies that the individual has reached and fulfilled all of his potentials, talents and competencies (Boeree). In line with this, the subject for this topic would be Oprah Winfrey. Oprah Winfrey came from an extremely poor family, daughter of a housemaid and a soldier. She lived her childhood in extreme poverty and was often teased by other children due to poverty and her racial background. First, her basic physiological needs, were poorly catered to because of extreme poverty. However, her strong will and character enabled her to attain her safety, belonging and esteem needs. And her status right now as one of the most successful women in the world is a manifestation of a successful self-actualization (A Biography). In self-actualizing an individual, there are three character traits that together shall define a new personality type. First, perception and experience is an integral part of molding a person. His eagerness to discover new things and learn new ideas shall contribute largely to the development of his personality and potentials. Another, in self-actualization, an individual must have a spontaneous attitude in expressing their thoughts and ideas. He must be natural and must have an attitude of general acceptance towards other people and to himself. And lastly, to fully attain self-actualization, individuals must have a sense of belongingness towards the whole society. They should be able to become friendly and empathic to other people’s feelings and idea and capable of creating harmonious interpersonal relationship to people outside his intimate friends. Oprah Winfrey, in her own way had undergone her own self-actualizing process. Her life experiences were manifestations of her successful attainment of her potentials and competencies. First, she was always open to changes, new ideas and experiences. Since her childhood, she had welcomed her potentials and worked hard to develop it. Further, she has always been liberal minded and true to her opinions and thoughts. She was one of the strongest individuals who weren’t afraid to voice out their opinion. And lastly, her commitment to the community and her developed empathy towards other people equipped her to become attached to the community. Thus, personality development is a holistic process. It takes into account physical, mental and emotional needs. And it encompasses personal growth, and goes beyond growth that is attributed with an individual’s ability to reach out to the society in general. References Boeree, C. George. Abraham Maslow. Retrieved November 8, 2007 from http://webspace.ship.edu/cgboer/maslow.html Heylighen, Francis. A Cognitive-Systematic Reconstruction of Maslow’s Theory of Self-Actualization. Retrieved November 8, 2007 A Biography: Oprah Winfrey. Retrieved November 8, 207 from http://oprah.urbanhustler.com/biography/   

Individual and environmental factors Essay

1.1Explain the individual and environmental factors that impact positively or negatively on learning. The study of adult learning – ANDRAGOGY – originated in Europe in the 1950s and was then pioneered as a theory and model of adult learning from the 1970s by Malcolm knowles, an American practitioner and theorist of adult education. He defined androgogy as: „the art and science of helping adults learnâ€Å" Knowles identified six principles of adult learning, which are: 1.Adults are internally motivated and self-directed. 2. Adults bring life experiences and knowledge to learning experiences. 3. Adults are goal oriented. 4. Adults are relevancy oriented. 5. Adults are practical. 6. Adults learners like to be respected. With individualised learning the trainer needs to consider and cater for the needs of individual participants. Some of the key factors to consider are: -Rates of learning and learning style -Attitude -Maturity -Interest which effect the level of learning -Motivation -Learners can work at their own pace at the time most convenient to them -Different learning styles can be accommodated -Etc. All this above mentioned factors can have positive or negative impact on learning. I have identified that people have different learning styles and it is very important to utilise this to gaing the most from each individual learner and to help make their learning as effective as possible. There is no one right combination of elements that will magically result in a positive climate for learning for every participant. There is also four kinds of learning styles: -Visual learning style has a preference for seen or observed things, including pictures, diagrams, demonstrations, displays, handouts, films,  flip-chart, etc. These people will use phrases such as „show meâ€Å", „lets have a look at thatâ€Å" and will be bes table to perform a new task after reading the instrucitons or watching someone else do it first. These are people who will work from lists and written derections and instructions. -Auditory learning style has a preference for the transfer of information through listening: to spoken word, of self or others, of sounds and noises. These people will use phrases such as „tell meâ€Å", lets talk it overâ€Å" and will be best able to perform a new task after listening to instructions from an expert. -Kinaesthetic learning styles has a preference for physical experience touching, feeling, holding, doing,, practical hands-on experience. These people will use phrases such as „let met tryâ€Å", how do you feel? And will be best table to perform a new task by going ahead and trying it out, learning as they go. These are the people who like to experiment, hands-on, and never look at the instructions first. -Auditory digital learning style has a preference for working outside of the senses. People will tend to: have a need to make sense of the word, to figure things out, to understand. Talk to themselves and carrz on conversations with you in their mind.Learn by working things out in their mind.Not to be spontaneous, as they like to think things through. Have logic play a key role in the decision process as do facts and figures. Memorize by steps, procedures, sequences. The learners have a wide range of learning needs and styles, and this diversity must be take into account by employing a variety of training methods. In additions, the size of the venue, the arrangement of the furniture, the functioning of equipment and other physical aspects of the training room all contribute to, or detract from, the learning evironment. When these factors can be manipulated to be positive influences, an environment more conductive to learning will be created. Organisational and process decisions: Venue, Facilities,Environment, Meals and refreshments, Accessibility, Cost and Physical layout. Environment – the environment around the training centre should be conductive to training taking place. There are various ways in which we can adapt the learning environment so that it caters for the physical needs of the participants: The temperature and environment within a training room should facilitate learning, it should be warm but not excessively hot or too cold because participants should be comfortable to pay enought attention to presentation. The layout of the room should be inviting suggesting the prospect of interesting activity and with adequate „break outâ€Å" areas. Make sure that you are comfortable with the layout of the room to deliver the best of your ability and the training will not be as effective as it otherwise could have been. A positive learning environment nurtures these feelings by allowing sudents to explore and expand their knowledge without undue risk or fear. Bring all types of learning could be positive for the individual as we are all different people and also confidentatiality is important too. Negative impact can be that participants do not switch off mobile phones what may lead to disturbing other participants and also trainer. Another negative factor could be lighting which should be appropriate for activities such as note taking, viewing of audio-visual aids and hands-on computer training otherwise it will have impact on individuals or group. Resource availability is based on available resources. The venue will have available a laptop, with internet access and an overhead projector. A flip chart will be available together with marker pens and pens and paper. Formative Assessment the goal of formative assessment is to gather feedback that can be used by the instructor and the students to guide improvements in the ongoing teaching and learning context. These are low stakes assessments for students and instructors. Examples: †¢Asking students to submit one or two sentences identifying the main point of a lecture †¢Have students submit an outline for a paper. †¢Early course evaluations Summative Assessment the goal of summative assessment is to measure the level of success or proficiency that has been obtained at the end of an instructional unit, by comparing it against some standard or benchmark. Examples: †¢Assigning a grade to a final exam †¢Critique of a Senior recital †¢University Faculty Course Evaluations The outcome of a summative assessment can be used formatively, however, when students or faculty take the results and use them to guide their efforts and activities in subsequent courses. ACTIVITY 2 Undertaken at the workshop. ACTIVITY 3 How you created a positive learning environment: To create a positive learning environment i made sure the temperature and enviromnent within a training room was fine, e.g. warm but not excessively hot or cold, clean, welcoming, bright and colorful.Lighting was appropriate for activities such as note taking, viewing of audio – visual aids that the layout of the room was inviting, suggesting the prospect of interesing acitivity and with adequate „break outâ€Å" arears and also that the participants had free access to water and toilets. The feedback on your activity from learner participants: To get the feedback on my presentation from learner participants i used a feedback questionnaire with the following questions. On a scale of 1 – 5 (1being the worst and 5 being the best) please circle the one that applies 1.Was the learning informative? 2.Was the information delivered in a concise and structured manner? 3.Did you find the learning topic interesting? 4.Do you feel you were supported through questioning and feedback? 5.Did you find the activity clear and simple to follow And i aslo left space for any other comments or development needs. Comments and development needs recommended by participants: my topis was Junk food vs Healthy food would be good to explain more healthy options, could do meal plans – suggest exercise reqires the slides were sometimes unclear – blue words – blue background. Enjoyed though. No – good presentation Good reminder of what we know and why i tis important to eat healthily. I will try to eat less sugar!! No, very clear and enthusiastidly given. No. Was a very good presentation, good use of powerpoint slides. Observation record from assessor Les Curzon: OBSERVATION RECORD: F211A Candidate name:LUKAS DEMJANJUNK FOOD/HEALTHY FOOD Demjan898@gmail.com Unit 3DLA Delivering Learning and Development Activities Observation Criteria Assessor feedback – to be completed by the assessor with notes to support the decision Creates an environment that is positive & conducive to learning – e.g. – health & safety – room layout – welcome – accommodates needs – puts participant at ease – builds rapport H&S not covered Ice breaker, write favourite food. The audience was some distance away and some had their back to you to start with. Structures & sequences effectively for learning e.g. – introduction – main body – conclusion Good introduction and you got the attention of the learners. Main body informative Provides clear aims / learning outcomes No clear aims and objectives. Manages learning activity effectively – uses a range of appropriate training skills Tended to be mostly lecture style with a few questions. – uses learning resources appropriately and effectively Good use of PowerPoints with appropriate images and addresses VAK. – supports learners via questioning and feedback Asked lots of questions but tended to be closed â€Å"does anybody† – uses appropriate formative & summative assessment methods Formative through Q&A, summative Q&A – could have had a quiz. Could have designed a meal. – summarises and concludes the learning and development activity Summarised throughout and reinforced – assists learners to reflect on their learning and identify further needs Via Evaluation form – collects feedback from participants Evaluation form General Comments / Feedback Lukas, An informative session on healthy food. The identified need being to improve the health of employees? The audience were physically distant and you could have brought them closer to you. This could have been achieved after your ice breaker I am aware that you did the presentation in your second language. You tended to read which slowed the pace and it lacked energy. You need to plan and prepare in good time. You have the basics of a good session and need to develop it by having SMART objectives and lots of activities. A good effort and you need to consider the Systematic Training Cycle when you reflect in your TMA. Well done. Smart objectives should be: Specific means making a clear statement about the knowledge or skill that the trainee should be able to do and actually demostrate at the end of the course. This includes the level of operation, such as „after the training, te trainee should be able to use the machine safely and efficiently to produce the product at the specified qualityâ€Å". Measurable means that the standard of the trainees performance after the training can be measured in terms of, for example, quality and number of tiems in a specified period of time. Achievable means that it should be possible for the trainee to achieve the objectives in the light of the situation, the practicability, and the intelligence and motivation of the trainee. Realistic means that the objectives should be obviously useful and clearly related to the type of work that the trainee carries out. Time – related means that the trainee should be able to develop understanding, attain concepts and demonstrate skills withing a pre – specified period of time. For example, uou mighy be able to type a leeter perfectly if you took an hour to do it, but not if you only had five minutes.A skilled typist would be able to achive the objective in the shorter time. EVALUTATION AGAINST SYSTEMATIC LEARNING CYCLE 1. Identify training needs There are several ways in which training needs may be identified but unfortunately i did not have a choice to find out the training needs as i met the participants for the very first time. 2. Set training objectives In general, the objective of training is to develop in people the knowledge and understanding, skills and competence that they need to meet required performance standards. I did not concentrate that much on the Smart objectives but for the futher development needs i will need to plan and prepare in good time. 3. Plan the training Bearing in mind the nature of the subject matter in which employee needs to be trained, decisions have to be made about how and where it is to be carried out. There are several choices. Most training, however, falls into one of two categories: On-the-job trainin, which as the term implies, takes place while the trainee is actually working or it could be Of-job-training, which may be external training, when, for example, an individual or a small group is sent to a local college or training centre or to a higher education institution to undertake a professional qualification.I could not decide where was i doing presentation. 4. implement the training There is six training methods such as Lecture, Seminar, Case study, Role-play, Syndicate work, Exercises i decided for seminar which is ideal to discuss a topic or concept. I think it was effective because i introduced the subject and run a group discussion where trainess presented their views on which i could comment. I also used training media PowerPoint and visual aids such as overhead projector and flipchart which i used for the answers to my questions and for laying main points of a talk. It was effective way of learning because people pay enought attention to the powerpoint presentation.Preperation involved working on the detail of the training session and also draft my notes of what i was going to say. I went through each element of the course carefully, drafted a separate set of notes for each element but did not place them in a file which was making me confused and lost. I did not cover Ice breaker but aafter i had a good introduction and attention of the learners. Main sect ions were informative. No clear aims and objectives And tended to read which slowed the pace and it lacked energy. 5. Evaluate the course It is a socially interactive process after which the participants should feel  confident that htey have all learned from the experience. Additionally, it should also be effecitve i terms of achieving the trianing objectives which i need to develop by having Smart objectives and a lot of activities. 6. Analysis and review It is rare for a training session that is being run for the first time to achieve every single aspect of every objective. Analysis and review is the final stage of the systematic trianing cycle which helped me to reveal areas that need to be improved and showed me what do i need to work on. 2 RECOMMENDATIONS TO IMPROVE MY FUTURE PERFORMANCE: 1. IceBreaker It is very important to get the participants talking to each other and to relax because people can be quite intimidated at courses, especially in front of a big group so more i get them to relax and enjoy it, the more easily they will learn. 2. Running a trainning session In advance of actually running a session, i will need to go through my notes and learn them so well that i will not need to refer to them because it lack energy